David Hytner was our man at the Etihad tonight. Here’s his report. Thanks for reading this MBM. Nighty night!
Antonio Conte talks to Sky Sports. “It was an emotional game for sure. It was an exciting game. A good game. We followed a plan. We knew for sure Manchester City would keep possession of the ball for 65 to 70 minutes. We had to be good tactically in a defensive way. At the same time, when we were defending, the first thought was how to attack. We created chances to score other goals against a fantastic team. A good win for us. It will give us more confidence. It wasn’t simple to play Manchester City after three losses in a row, but it’s a process. We are working very hard to improve every aspect, and this type of game gives us confidence to trust the work we are doing. We will continue to give our best. I hate to lose! If I tell you it was good to have three losses, then no. I hate to lose. But it was important to have a reaction. The Premier League is very difficult. I am enjoying working with this group of players. They are fantastic, one of the best group I have worked with in my career. We have space for improvement and many young players. We have a lot of work to do, but we are not scared to work!”
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Pep Guardiola speaks to Sky. “It was a good game. It was difficult, they defend so deep and so narrow, and they have a lot of quality. We tried many things. They had good counter attacks. They are really good up front. We always had the feeling they were dangerous, we knew their style. The problem was they had five at the back, six at the back, and with the quality they have, it is not easy. It’s always difficult. Brentford was like this. It is difficult. But we had the chances. Unfortunately we could not score them. They were clinical, and the crosses we could not defend. We had the momentum, but Joao loses the ball, Kyle lost the ball when he was alone, they had a few passes, they arrived at the byline and we defended badly at the back post. People say it cannot happen, but football can happen! It happens. I don’t need to lose a game to know it is difficult to win the Premier League. There are many, many games to play and people will drop points. We have a long week, we’re going to enjoy the Champions League at home and train for our next game.”
We’re yet to hear from the managers. The views of Guardiola and Conte coming up soon, so don’t close us down yet. In the meantime, why not crack open another tab and peruse David Hytner’s match report for the Observer?
“There’s still ample time for City to win this.” Aw, come on, cut the MBM some slack, that’s what most of us were thinking when Mahrez roofed that penalty, right? Huh? But not Iain Gamble! Seconds before Kane’s header flew past Ederson, he emailed: “Yeah, and for the sake of balance… also for Spurs to win this?!” Good call ... and more fool me, looking back, given what Spurs pulled off at Leicester during injury time exactly one month ago. They’re making a habit of this.
Harry Kane, unquestionably man of the match, talks to Sky Sports. “Crazy game! We worked so hard for so long, being 2-1 ahead for quite a lot of the second half, so to concede a penalty in the last minute was so heartbreaking. But credit to the boys, we managed to find another chance at the end, and thankfully I could put it away. That’s what the Premier League is all about. A great game for the neutral and obviously for our fans as well. They’ll go happy today! We had to find a way to get our season back on track, so to grind out that result was really special. Everyone was outstanding, and for bouncing back after a tough week. Hopefully we can build on this now.”
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Some new ground broken on the involuntary yelping front in Sky commentary tonight, incidentally. Volume up!
WOW!!!! What a game this has been!! 🔥🔥
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) February 19, 2022
Just moments after Manchester City equalised from the penalty spot, Harry Kane blows the title race WIDE OPEN again with his second of the evening!
😮 pic.twitter.com/8rmLdPBI43
As for City ... well, they’re still in the box seat and will remain favourites to win the title. But they’ve given second-placed Liverpool some renewed hope. They’re still six points in front, but have now played one game more, and they still have to welcome Jurgen Klopp’s side to the Etihad. Should Liverpool beat Leeds during the week, closing the gap to three points, City’s trip next weekend to Everton suddenly looks a little more daunting than it did at 5.29pm today. But hey, this wild and wonderful match illustrates that there’s no point any of us predicting anything. Let’s just sit back and enjoy the ride.
OK, first things first: that’s a huge result for Tottenham Hotspur. Few expected them to take anything from this fixture, having lost their last two games miserably, but they’ve completed the double over Manchester City, and this gives their faltering top-four bid fresh impetus. No wonder they celebrate wildly ... though it was such a dramatic match, the clock nearly ticking into the 100th minute, that it’s worth a wild cavort in and of itself! What a performance. The first big statement of the Antonio Conte era.
FULL TIME: Manchester City 2-3 Tottenham Hotspur
Football, eh? Bloody hell! Looks like we might have a title race after all.
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90 min +8: Hojbjerg brings down De Bruyne. A hail-mary free kick is flung into the box. Sanchez hooks clear from his six-yard box. Bedlam!
90 min +7: Lloris claims a high ball and falls to the floor theatrically. Tick, tock.
90 min +6: When that goal went in, Guardiola sunk to his knees while Conte raced off in a semi-circle, shades of the way Ray Wilkins celebrated his goal in the 1983 FA Cup final. City can’t find a third equaliser, can they?
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GOAL! Manchester City 2-3 Tottenham Hotspur (Kane 90+5)
Forget astonishing! Forget sensational! This is truly psychedelic! Kulusevski is sent scampering into space down the right. He’s onside this time. He reaches the byline and dinks across for Kane, who rises highest and batters a downward header into the bottom right!
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90 min +4: City snatched all three points in injury time against Arsenal. Can they repeat the feat against their north London rivals?
90 min +3: Before the restart, Sessegnon is replaced by Sanchez.
GOAL! Manchester City 2-2 Tottenham Hotspur (Mahrez 90+2 pen)
Mahrez pauses during his run-up, then lashes an unstoppable shot into the top right! Lloris went the right way, yet had no chance ... and there’s still ample time for City to win this!
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Penalty for Man City!
90 min +1: Mahrez prepares to take. Before he can, City harangue the referee. Romero is already on a yellow card, and they want the award of a second one. They don’t get their wish.
90 min: VAR asks the referee to take a look at the monitor. There will be seven extra minutes.
89 min: A brouhaha in the Spurs box. Silva crosses from the left. Romero slides across, the ball clattering into his forearm. Romero was attempting to withdraw his arm, but it was over his head. City claim a penalty. They may well get one.
88 min: Now Laporte is down, having jarred his knee in a contest with Doherty. He grimaces. A lot of pain, but it looks like it subsides quickly, as he’s up and about in short order.
87 min: Dier goes down and requires treatment. He’s up again soon enough. The referee performatively taps his watch. Expect a fair bit of added time.
85 min: Walker flashes across the face of goal from the right. Foden attempts a cute backflick, six yards out. He doesn’t get enough on it. Cancelo recycles on the left flank. He loops long. Romero heads out for a corner. City take it short, play it back, and De Bruyne wedges harmlessly out for a goal kick. Spurs still hanging on. What they’d give for that third goal to have stood!
84 min: City continue to pin Spurs back. No way through. Yet.
83 min: Doherty comes on for Royal.
82 min: Kane is down in the centre circle, holding his back, having been nudged by Rodri. No foul, play on. City refuse to put the ball out, as is their right. Eventually Lloris claims possession and stops the game. On come the physios.
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80 min: Son is replaced by Moura. Then before Lloris restarts the game, he’s booked for time wasting. This is going to be quite the dramatic denouement.
79 min: Spurs can’t get out of their own box. City swing in crosses from both wings. The pressure’s on. Then it’s off as De Bruyne, betraying his frustration, steps across Royal and concedes a free kick.
77 min: Nothing comes of this corner either. “After such a disappointing AFCON with Algeria, I’m sure the City substitute will be eager to prove that there is life in Mahrez.” Our old pal Peter Oh, ladies and gentlemen. He’s here all week. Try the black-pudding-based scotch egg.
76 min: Romero is booked before another corner, having tested the referee’s patience with too much pushing and shoving.
75 min: That’s given City a new spring in their step. They respond by pushing Spurs back and winning a couple of corners. Spurs scramble clear.
DISALLOWED SPURS GOAL!
73 min: Kane has the ball in the net again. Forget simply astonishing. This is extraordinary! Kulusevski romps down the right. He cuts in and shoots. The ball deflects across to Kane, who spins on a sixpence and threads a shot into the bottom left. Bedlam! But VAR catches Kulusevski inches offside, and it’s a reprieve for the Premier League leaders!
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71 min: Sessegnon gives the ball away, then tugs Mahrez to the ground in a panic. A free kick out on the City right. Everyone lines up on the edge of the box. De Bruyne curls in ... to nobody in particular. Uncharacteristically poor from the genius midfielder. City recycle possession, though, and De Bruyne tries again from the right. This diagonal ball is much, much better ... but from a tight angle, Silva lashes a wild volley deep into the stand behind.
69 min: Cancelo whips a cross in from the left. Gundogan flicks on at the near post. The ball cannons off the chest of Davies and into the grateful arms of Lloris.
68 min: City make their first change, the in-form Mahrez coming on for the similarly in-form Sterling. Some squad City have, huh.
67 min: Nothing comes of the resulting corner. Spurs look to counter through Hojbjerg but is clattered by Walker, who is lucky not to see yellow.
66 min: Lloris owed Spurs one after his cock-up for the City goal, and he settles his account here. Gundogan curls powerfully towards the top right. It’s heading for the postage stamp, but Lloris somehow extends fully and tips round the post, stopping a certain goal. What a save!
64 min: Silva flicks into the side netting from a tight angle on the left. Spurs go up the other end, Son curling towards Kane from the left again. Kane’s one on one with Ederson! He looks to slot into the bottom right, but Ederson spreads himself and blocks. What a save! That was surely going to give Spurs a two-goal cushion. City break, and Hojbjerg hauls De Bruyne back at the cost of a yellow card. This is breathless. High drama!
63 min: Spurs are suddenly a little more comfortable on the ball. Not much more comfortable, admittedly, but a few passes are sticking now. Before Kane struck, they could barely string two together.
61 min: City claimed for offside, but Kane had timed his run perfectly. A huge gap in the middle of that City defence. “He’s one of our own,” sing the away fans, in a more pointed manner than usual.
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GOAL! Manchester City 1-2 Tottenham Hotspur (Kane 59)
This is astonishing. It’s been all City since the restart, but the man they wanted to sign last summer has put Spurs ahead again! Some space for Son to the left of the City D. He drops a shoulder and curls in for Kane, who breaks into space on the penalty spot and guides a sensational first-time strike into the top right!
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58 min: Kane is Tottenham’s only hope. Like that’s breaking news. When he drops deep and looks to pick a pass, City panic a little. He nearly releases Kulusevski again, quarterbacking in the centre circle, but overhits his pass this time, Ederson claiming on the edge of his box. The Spurs full debutant would surely have been flagged offside anyway.
57 min: City have enjoyed 90 percent possession during the last ten minutes.
55 min: Space for Sterling down the left. He cuts back for Silva, free on the penalty spot. The ball flies inches behind him. Spurs blooter clear. The visitors are hanging on here.
54 min: City have taken 33 touches in the opposition box to Tottenham’s one ... and yet they could be behind again. Kane sprays a long pass down the right for Son, who wants to break into the box but is held up by the last man Walker. Son still makes enough space to open his body to send a sidefoot towards the bottom left. Ederson is all over it.
53 min: Some more tussling, this time between Laporte and Davies. The ref gets both captains together and offers some beneficial advice, in the rugby-union style. Eventually the corner comes in. Dias, at the near post, flicks out a leg and sends the ball flying across the face of goal. The slightest touch and it’s in. But there are no City men there. Spurs escape by the skin of their teeth.
51 min: De Bruyne strolls down the inside-right channel and dinks diagonally. The ball’s deflected out on the left for yet another City corner. Before it can be taken, Laporte and Dier are read the riot act by the referee for some wrestling-infused nonsense.
49 min: A couple of City corners lead to nothing much. The hosts and champions have picked up where they left off in the first half: utterly on top, pushing Spurs further and further back.
47 min: Now it’s Sessegnon’s turn to be caught snoozing. Dias wedges down the right, over the static and unaware Spurs left-back, towards Walker, who has broken clear into the box. Spurs are very lucky that Dias overhits the pass and Walker can’t control.
46 min: Cancelo nips in ahead of a dozing Kulusevski and romps down the left. Kulusevski, chasing back, clips his opponent and is fortunate not to go into the book.
City get the ball rolling for the second half. There have been no half-time changes.
During the build-up to City’s equaliser, Walker brazenly shoved Sessegnon off the pitch. It was probably a foul ... but far enough back in the move to render VAR impotent, and you could make a case for it being a reasonable challenge in a contact sport anyway. Kane wasn’t happy about it at all, though the incident was on the halfway line, and Spurs still had ample opportunity to stop City doing what they did. It certainly wasn’t a clear and obvious outrage, but there it is anyway, for the record.
Half-time truism. The bookies always win.
HALF TIME: Manchester City 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur
City have been the better team by some distance. Spurs will be happy enough regardless, the risible error from their goalkeeper apart.
45 min +1: Sterling skins Royal down the left with ease. The much more competent Romero comes across to get in between Sterling and the ball, before the City man can shoot. He shepherds out for a goal kick.
45 min: There will be two bonus first-half minutes.
44 min: Laporte sends a simple pass down the left channel sailing out for a goal kick. Most unCitylike.
43 min: De Bruyne crosses in from the right for Silva, who comes off second best in an aerial challenge with Dier. Silva wants a penalty, but come along. The ref is quite correctly not interested.
42 min: Walker fires a low cross in from the right. The ball makes it through to Sterling, racing in from the other side. He shoots, but Royal bravely blocks, and takes a whack upside his head for his trouble. He goes down, and the whistle goes so the physio can come on.
40 min: City push Spurs back. Sterling probes down the left, De Bruyne down the right. Tottenham’s back line creaks, but just about holds firm. There’s no out-ball, though.
38 min: After a confident start, Spurs are now all over the show. Bentancur is easily dispossessed allowing the hosts to launch yet another attack. Royal and Romero pair up to ensure De Bruyne doesn’t break clear down the left. They manage it, but it’s a hell of a battle.
37 min: De Bruyne crosses deep from the right. There’s no danger at the far stick, but Royal’s dismal clearing header lands at the feet of Cancelo, who drives wide left from the edge of the box. Goal kick, though City claim the shot took a nick and it should have been a corner.
35 min: That’s another one for Lloris’s ever-increasing blooper reel. The Spurs keeper was awful against Wolves last weekend, and that’s not going to improve his standing with Antonio Conte, who quietly fumes on the touchline.
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GOAL! Man City 1-1 Spurs (Gundogan 33)
This has been coming. A ball curled in low from the left by Sterling. Lloris goes down to claim but, under pressure from De Bruyne, lets the ball slip from his grasp. It breaks to Gundogan, who slams home!
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32 min: Cancelo is getting a lot of joy down the left flank. He drifts inside after a long dribble and looks for a team-mate in the box. He passes down the channel but there’s nobody there. Lloris claims.
30 min: Rodri crosses from the right. Gundogan, the ball behind him, attempts a scorpion kick from 12 yards. The ball sails harmlessly wide left. Full marks for artistic endeavour, though.
29 min: Foden leaves Sessegnon behind with absurd ease, and crosses from the right. Cancelo prepares to shoot. Royal slides in, a bold move in his own penalty box. His block is timed perfectly, and City are forced to turn tail. Just for a second, Spurs were exposed.
28 min: Hojbjerg is good to continue. We go again.
27 min: Hojbjerg is down, a problem with his left foot. A pause.
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25 min: This match is wide open and very exciting. Sterling has a whack from distance at one end; Lloris smothers. Royal romps up the other end along the right wing. He cuts infield and sends an ambitious effort over the bar. In the middle, Kane, in space but ignored, seethes quietly.
23 min: City don’t look too comfortable at the back. They push up high again. Kane should send Son clear on goal but plays the ball behind his partner, forcing him to bend his run. Son crosses. Laporte’s loose attempt at a clearing header nearly falls to Kane on the edge of the box. Kane can’t quite control, and a big chance passes Spurs by.
22 min: Corner for City out on the right. It’s chested down on the edge of the box by Gundogan, teeing up Cancelo for a vicious larrup at goal. The ball sails inches wide right at warp speed. The City we know so well have finally turned up.
21 min: Sterling has a run down the inside-left channel and feeds Gundogan in the middle. Gundogan opens his body and curls a shot towards the top right. The ball twangs off the outside of the post.
19 min: City put together their finest move of the match so far, Cancelo and Sterling combining cutely down the left, the former racing free towards the corner of the six-yard box. Lloris blocks, then the flag goes up for offside, almost certainly incorrectly. Had Cancelo put the ball in the net, VAR would have ruled him onside.
18 min: Kane, perhaps with a point to prove after the transfer fiasco of the summer, looks well up for this tonight. He’s dropping deep and making most of the play for Spurs. The visitors are looking confident, testament to Antonio Conte’s powers of persuasion given their recent form.
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17 min: Cancelo dribbles in from the left, sits Royal down, and curls for the top right. Inches wide. Lloris wasn’t getting there had it been on target.
16 min: Sterling drops a shoulder in the hope of tearing past Sessegnon down the left, but the Spurs defender holds firm. The door slams shut.
14 min: City win another corner, this time out left. After a brief game of pinball, Silva squirts a shot harmlessly wide left.
13 min: Kane sends Royal romping down the right into acres of space with a glorious diagonal sweep. Royal lumps it towards Sessegnon, just to the left of the City goal. Sessegnon does his level best to keep the ball in play, but he’d have to be an Olympic-standard gymnast to succeed. Royal’s cross wildly overhit. That was a great opportunity.
11 min: Dias with another long pass straight through to Lloris. City and their supporters are a little subdued at the minute. A long time to sort things out, of course.
9 min: The Spurs fans are in full voice, and no wonder. Their team have come out in a mega-positive mood. Sterling is dispossessed and for a second it looks as though Hojbjerg will launch another speedy counter. He can’t pick a pass, though, and the chance to launch a three on three is gone.
8 min: De Bruyne crosses diagonally from a deep position on the right. There are three City shirts at the far stick, but the ball somehow evades them all, and Lloris is able to sort.
7 min: Corner for City down the right. Can they strike back immediately? Nope. Foden’s delivery is too long, Cancelo is ponderous, Kulusevski nicks the ball away, and the pressure is released.
6 min: Well that’s put the cat among the pigeons, and what an instant impact by Kulusevski, making his first start for Tottenham tonight!
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GOAL! Man City 0-1 Spurs (Kulusevski 4)
Kane, his back to goal on the halfway line, plays an instant reverse pass down the left wing for Son, who is sent clear in the City half! Dias playing an absurdly high line. Son romps into the box, draws Ederson, thinks about shooting himself, but instead rolls across the face of the box to Kulusevski, who slots into an empty net!
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4 min: A little space for Cancelo down the left. He loops long, hoping to find Sterling at the far post, but the cross is too high and floats out for a goal kick. And then ...
2 min: Son scampers down the left wing, but the flag pops up for offside. Both teams with an early speculative punt.
1 min: City snaffle possession in double-quick time, then Dias attempts to release Sterling down the inside-right channel. Lloris comes to the edge of his box to claim.
Spurs get the ball rolling ... but only after everyone takes a knee. There’s no room for racism.
The teams are out! City are in their sky blue, while Spurs wear lilywhite. Anticipation crackles around the City of Manchester Stadium. A quick one-two blast of Hey Jude and Blue Moon coming up. Kick off just a few na-na-nas away.
Antonio Conte talks to Sky. “Lucas Moura has played three games in eight days, so it was important for me to make the rotation with Kulusevski, and give him some rest. We know that we have to improve, and we are ready to play this game.”
Pep Guardiola speaks to Sky Sports. “Conte’s teams always resilience and character. They never give up. They are a fantastic counter-attacking team. The guys who played in Portugal deserved to play, so it was difficult to drop John and Riyad.”
Some big results in the 3pms. Liverpool beat Norwich 3-1 to close the gap at the top to six points; Chelsea leave it late to win 1-0 at Palace, keeping their very slim hopes of the title alive, 13 points off the pace; and Arsenal avenge their opening-day defeat at Brentford, winning 2-1 to edge to within a point of the promised land of the top four. Spurs are suddenly a little bit adrift.
Someone’s been at debutant Dejan’s Wikipedia entry. Own up, was it you?
Dejan Kulusevski (Macedonian: Дејан Кулушевски, romanized: Dejan Kuluševski; born 25 April 2000) is a professional footballer who plays as a winger or midfielder for Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur, on loan from Serie A club Juventus, and the Sweden national team & he will score 2 goals today againts Manchester City .
Two changes to the Manchester City starting XI from the team sent out to thrash Sporting Lisbon. Kyle Walker replaces John Stones, while Ilkay Gundogan takes the place of Riyad Mahrez.
Tottenham make four changes to the side that lost at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers last weekend. Dejan Kulusevski, on loan from Juventus, makes his first start for Spurs, while Eric Dier, Emerson Royal and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg return. Matt Doherty, Davinson Sanchez, Harry Winks and Lucas Moura are all benched.
The teams
Manchester City: Ederson, Walker, Dias, Laporte, Joao Cancelo, De Bruyne, Rodri, Gundogan, Bernardo Silva, Foden, Sterling.
Subs: Stones, Ake, Zinchenko, Fernandinho, Mahrez, Carson, Delap, McAtee, Lavia.
Tottenham Hotspur: Lloris, Romero, Dier, Davies, Emerson, Bentancur, Hojbjerg, Sessegnon, Kulusevski, Son, Kane.
Subs: Doherty, Sanchez, Winks, Rodon, Gollini, Bergwijn, Lucas Moura, White, Scarlett.
Referee: Anthony Taylor (Cheshire).
Preamble
Tottenham Hotspur beat Manchester City in the first round of fixtures this season. That seems a long time ago now. City are miles clear at the top of the table, while Tottenham, having defenestrated Nuno Espirito Santo and replaced him with Antonio Conte, have lost two in a row, in miserable fashion as well, to slip to eighth. With City flying, a home victory looks a shoo-in, but Spurs will take succour from their recent record against the Citizens, having won three of the last four league meetings … albeit all in north London. With the prospect of Champions League football next year slipping away, they could really do with an applecart-upsetting result here. City meanwhile plan to take another casual step closer to their fourth title in five seasons. Kick off is at 5.30pm GMT. It’s on!
